Driftwood Restaurant & Sports Bar

What Driftwood Restaurant & Sports Bar does

The Driftwood Restaurant & Sports Bar is a privately-held, multi-service hospitality operator in St. Ignace, Michigan, located at 590 N. State St. on the I-75 corridor three miles north of the Mackinac Bridge and directly across from Shepler's and Star Line ferries to Mackinac Island. The business was founded in 2001 and has served the local community and visitors for approximately 25 years. It operates a single integrated property offering a full-service restaurant serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner with carry-out, a remodeled sports bar with multiple televisions, games, and weekend DJ/band and karaoke entertainment, a 27-room all-ground-floor lake-view motel open year-round, the Lakeview Loft vacation apartment sleeping 10-12, and the Snowflake Cottage. The facility has direct trail access for snowmobiles, ATVs, and biking, supports a free casino shuttle, offers pet-friendly lodging, and sells branded merchandise and gift certificates.

The business runs entirely as a direct-to-consumer, walk-in establishment with no proprietary software platform, app, or digital product. Customer acquisition is driven by the physical location's proximity to Mackinac Island ferry terminals and I-75 traffic, supplemented by a basic content website (thedriftwoodonline.com), links to the St. Ignace Visitors Bureau, and absence of disclosed paid digital advertising. Reservations are taken by phone and carry-out orders are placed by phone as well. The product surface consists of three core service lines (restaurant, sports bar, motel) and two sub-products (vacation rental, merchandise) operating under DBA names including The Driftwood, Driftwood Restaurant, Driftwood Sports Bar, Driftwood Motel, Lakeview Loft, and Snowflake Cottage.

Revenue is generated across five streams: restaurant food and beverage (transactional), sports bar beverage and entertainment spend (transactional), motel nightly rooms (effectively recurring per-night), Lakeview Loft and Snowflake Cottage nightly/weekly rental (recurring), and merchandise plus gift certificate sales (one-time). Pricing is not publicly disclosed for any line; motel reservations require a valid credit card and are subject to special event pricing, with after-hours lock-box check-in for late arrivals. Headcount is reported at 8 employees, no institutional investment or parent company is disclosed, and ownership is described as founder- or family-operated. No public stock listing exists under the legal name The Driftwood Motel Restaurant & Sports Bar.

Name

Driftwood Restaurant & Sports Bar

Legal name

The Driftwood Motel Restaurant & Sports Bar

Website

https://thedriftwoodonline.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2001

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Driftwood Restaurant & Sports Bar is a privately-held, multi-service hospitality operator in St. Ignace, Michigan, offering a full-service restaurant, sports bar, 27-room lake-view motel, and vacation rentals (Lakeview Loft and Snowflake Cottage), serving Mackinac Island tourists, I-75 travelers, and outdoor recreation enthusiasts across summer and winter seasons.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Hospitality Services

NAICS

Hotels (except Casino Hotels) and Motels (72111), Food Services and Drinking Places (722), Traveler Accommodation (7211)

SIC

Hotels & Motels (7011), Retail-Eating & Drinking Places (5810)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYTHAFAEAA

Neighborhood & Sports Bars

Travel & Hospitality/Foodservice & Beverage (Restaurants, Cafes, Bars)/Bars, Pubs & Nightlife Venues

SECONDARYCRANACAC

Sports Bars

Consumer Products & Retail/Tobacco, Alcohol & Cannabis Retail/On-Premise Alcohol Retail (Bars, Pubs & Taprooms)

SECONDARYTHAFACAH

Hotel & Resort Restaurants

Travel & Hospitality/Foodservice & Beverage (Restaurants, Cafes, Bars)/Full-Service Restaurants (Casual & Fine Dining)

Keywords

• Casual dining restaurants
• Sports bar entertainment
• Motel accommodations
• Vacation rental lodging
• Hospitality services

Headquarters

HQ city

St. Ignace

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Restaurant Food & Beverage Sales: Full-service restaurant serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner with a la carte menu items and carry-out options. Also serves cocktails and beverages.
2. Motel Accommodations: 27 all-ground floor lake-view rooms available for nightly rental. Includes amenities such as in-room coffee, refrigerators, air conditioning, and direct trail access.
3. Vacation Rental Income: Lakeview Loft apartment rental by night or week, sleeping 10-12 people. Additional Snowflake Cottage property available.
4. Sports Bar Revenue: Sports bar with alcoholic beverages, including beers on tap, cocktails, and entertainment offerings. Weekend DJ/band performances during peak seasons.
5. Merchandise Sales: Branded merchandise including hats, t-shirts, and sweatshirts. Also sells gift certificates.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels1 record

Core offering

Driftwood Restaurant & Sports Bar is a single-location, multi-service hospitality establishment in St. Ignace, Michigan that operates a full-service restaurant serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner (with carry-out), a sports bar featuring multiple TVs, beers on tap, games, and live entertainment, a 27-room lakeview motel, and vacation rental properties (Lakeview Loft, Snowflake Cottage). The business serves tourists, travelers, and locals near the Mackinac Island ferry terminals on I-75, operating year-round to cover summer tourism and winter snowmobile seasons.

Product overview

Driftwood Restaurant & Sports Bar operates as a multi-service hospitality establishment offering three core products: a full-service restaurant serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner with carry-out options; a sports bar featuring multiple screens, games, and entertainment including DJ/band performances and karaoke; and the Driftwood Motel with 27 ground-floor lake-view rooms. The business also offers vacation rental accommodations through the Lakeview Loft apartment. All services are located in St. Ignace, Michigan, with the restaurant and sports bar recently remodeled, and the business serving the community for 25 years.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Driftwood Restaurant Full-service restaurant serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner with a la carte menu items, a kids menu, appetizers, and carry-out ordering available by phone. Targets walk-in diners, motel guests, and area visitors.
• Driftwood Sports Bar Sports viewing venue with multiple indoor and outdoor televisions and satellite TV, serving alcoholic beverages including beers on tap and cocktails, Keno, two pool tables, shuffleboard, foosball, video games, video jukebox, karaoke, and weekend DJ/band performances during peak seasons.
• Driftwood Motel 27 all-ground floor lakeview rooms with in-room coffee, refrigerators, air conditioning, phones, and WiFi. Pet-friendly (with approval), open year-round, with direct access to snowmobile, ATV, and biking trails. Reservations by phone with after-hours lock box check-in available.
• Lakeview Loft Vacation Rental Spacious vacation rental apartment in downtown St. Ignace with views of Mackinac Island, Lake Huron, and St. Ignace Harbor. Features two bedrooms (two queen beds each, bunks, cots), fully equipped kitchen, daily housekeeping, WiFi, Wii gaming, movie channels, and DVD. Sleeps 10-12 people. Available nightly or weekly by phone reservation.
• Driftwood Merchandise and Gift Certificates Logo apparel merchandise including hats, t-shirts, and sweatshirts, plus gift certificates available for purchase. Targets loyal customers and visitors wanting branded souvenirs.
• Snowflake Cottage Vacation Rental Additional vacation rental property offered alongside the Lakeview Loft in St. Ignace, Michigan, providing guests an alternative lodging option.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Holiday Inn Express St. Ignace: National chain property serving St. Ignace/Mackinac tourists with standard amenities and loyalty program reach. Represents chain-scale competition for Driftwood's motel business.
• Baymont by Wyndham: Wyndham midscale motel chain with locations across Michigan tourist towns. Comparable amenity scope and price positioning to Driftwood Motel, but with national brand backing.
• Hampton Inn St. Ignace: Hilton's midscale chain operating in St. Ignace, drawing Mackinac-bound travelers with Hilton Honors loyalty program. Larger brand competes for the same lodging customers.

Others

• Cracker Barrel Old Country Store: National chain combining restaurant, retail/gift shop, and family-friendly atmosphere under one roof. Conceptually comparable multi-service hospitality-and-retail model, though operating at chain scale in highway vs. tourist-town locations.
• Airbnb (Mackinac/St. Ignace listings): Online marketplace for short-term vacation rentals competing with Driftwood's Lakeview Loft and Snowflake Cottage in the same St. Ignace market. Different distribution model but directly comparable vacation rental inventory.

Direct peers

• Quality Inn Lakefront St. Ignace: Choice Hotels property in St. Ignace with lakefront rooms and on-site breakfast, operating in the same Mackinac ferry corridor as Driftwood. Competes directly for ferry tourists and I-75 travelers needing lodging.
• Best Western Harbour Pointe Lakefront: Chain hotel located directly in St. Ignace on the waterfront, comparable to Driftwood as a competing ferry-adjacent lodging property serving Mackinac Island tourists. Direct local competitor for the same tourist segment.
• Americas Best Value Inn St. Ignace: Budget chain motel in St. Ignace serving Mackinac visitors at lower price points. Provides direct lodging competition in the same tourism corridor where Driftwood operates.
• The Chippewa Hotel Waterfront: Local waterfront hotel in St. Ignace offering lodging with lake views to Mackinac Island tourists, in the same ferry-adjacent corridor. Operates at comparable scale to Driftwood's motel side.
• Days Inn by Wyndham St. Ignace: Wyndham budget motel in the St. Ignace market competing for ferry tourists and Mackinac Island visitors seeking affordable lodging. Comparable budget motel positioning.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/driftwood-restaurant-&-sports-bar

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Driftwood Restaurant & Sports Bar